Mums the word for everyone’s favorite plant this September!   There are so very many types of mums!   Probably everyone who reads this article has a different type and color in mind!

Mum is, of course, short for chrysanthemum.  Chrysanthemum comes from Greek to Latin.  It literally means “golden flower”.  Chrysalis means golden, and anthenon means flower.

There are now thirteen types of mums in many different colors.  One type is the anemone mum.  Anemones have a single row of outer petals and a raised pincushion center.  They resemble the sea creature called anemone.  In the late 1700’s naturalists gave the name anemone to a sea creature with waving tentacles because they thought that they were similar to the flower in appearance.

The word also has a mythological connection.  Aphrodite, the goddess of love, made fun of the other Olympians for falling in love with mortals.  Then she fell in love with a mortal, Adonis.  She even went hunting with him.  She was devastated when he was killed by a wild boar.  The legend is that the anemone grew from the ground soaked in Adonis’ blood.  Because of Adonis’ sudden death, anemones are supposed to represent the fleeting nature of life.

Till next month!